1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to gaming devices that provide communication capabilities and enhanced gaming functions on a gaming machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
Casinos derive most of their revenue from gaming machines such as mechanical and video slots and table games such as poker and twenty-one. One important factor to casino operators is related to providing these games are minimizing operating costs. Minimizing operating costs involves factors, such as minimizing the labor and maintenance costs associated with providing a game at a gaming machine or at a table.
Maintenance operations for gaming machines deployed in the field, such as on the floor of a casino, within a bar or in a store, can be costly from lost revenue and labor perspectives. Revenues are lost while a gaming machine is not available for game play. The labor costs result from the costs of maintaining a staff to address on-going maintenance issues.
One reason maintenance operations are costly is that access to the interior of a gaming machine is very restricted. For security and regulatory purposes, gaming machines include a number of locked enclosures that are monitored by an internal security system. The locked enclosures and security system help to prevent unauthorized access to resources within the gaming machine that may be targets of theft or tampering, such as deposited money or gaming software. To address a maintenance issue that requires access to interior portions of the gaming machine, often two or more keys carried by separate individuals are required. During the performance of the maintenance operation in the interior, one individual not performing the maintenance may be required to watch the other individual performing the maintenance operation.
Thus, in view of the above, apparatus and method are desired that reduce the cost, time and effort associated with performing maintenance operations within an interior of a gaming machine.